I think I'll go by Tony

Life speeds on

2007-10-02T07:17:00.000-07:00

#4
Sitting in class
Pretending to be busy
Wow is this boring.

#5
How do I write this?
Every word must be perfect
Incompetence sucks.

I've taken to writing haikus and other forms of poetry when I'm bored in class, as opposed to stalking away on facebook. It's actually quite therapeutic and makes class go surprisingly even quicker than the aforementioned time-passing tool.

So the last two weeks have been a back and forth, up and down decision process as to whether or not I will choose to go abroad again next semester, to Chile. After weighing all of the pros and cons, I've decided that I'm gonna stay in Miami for the academic year, and then try to attend this 6-8 week program, which I think would be more beneficial for my career and social life here in Miami.

I also watched the movie Zeitgeist, which succeeded in turning me into a conspiracy theorist and general paranoid schizo. Obviously writers should not be swayed so easily, until checking up on sources and being an informed critic, but sometimes that's not easy.
The film is split up into 3 parts, the first of which hypothesizes that Christianity is nothing more than a sun worship religion derived from Ancient Egyptian religion that was around 2000 years before Jesus Christ was supposedly born. According to the film, there are hundreds of different sun-based gods and deities that fit the same mold, including birth on December 25, known as "Lamb of God", "Alpha and Omega", born of a virgin, and that performed miracles. Horus, an ancient Egyptian god, according to the film's sources, was, like Jesus, crucified, dead for three days, and then resurrected. The film later explains that this is the migratory pattern of the sun, due to the winter solstice. On December 21, the darkest day of the year, the Sun sets to its lowest point, or "dies", and stays there for three days. Then, the sun rises, or is "resurrected". The film argues that the "Son of God" is really the "Sun of God" and did rise- every day since the beginning of life on Earth.

Interesting? Huh? Watch the rest.

CAREER RAM-PAGE

2007-09-11T19:28:00.000-07:00

OK, so this whole journalism idea is beginning to pan out in a way that I'm beginning to like. I've gotten my second article assignment, which is pretty awesome. I'm going to be writing about the new GRE and the differences between the old versus the new exam. Not that interesting, but field/vital writing experience, nonetheless.

The first official meeting of 'Canes Gone Crazy took place today. I landed a spot as "main talent," which means that my beautiful face will be gracing UMTV quite regularly. I will also be writing my voice overs, which = MORE WRITING EXPERIENCE, wooo hooo! Excuse the hyperactive typage (is that a word?) but I'm just super excited and had a caffeine infused chai latte earlier, so you can imagine my craziness.

Gandhi is right around the corner...
and so is MY BIRTHDAY!

Quick serious commentary: Today was September 11, 2007. 6 years later. Such a depressing thing. We really should never forget the events of the day. But don't you get a hint of a warm, fuzzy, feeling knowing that in our minds we're getting away from that event that did so much harm to so many people? - as if you to say that you outlived it by this or that amount of years. Although I will never forget that day, I would love it to be as far in my past as possible.

love love love love love love love.

post-SAS life blows

2007-09-01T17:35:00.000-07:00

I want to make this blog a blog that talks about important issues and different crucial topics, but I can't help but to write about things that are important specifically to me and things that are going in my life that are constantly affecting what I think and the person that I am.

To me, this semester does not feel like my first semester back at UM, but rather the semester after Semester at Sea. All I do is sit around all day and wish for the days of the summer where I was surrounded in Semester at Sea kids and look forward to all the things that we would do together. And the reason why I was so close to them was not because of something so shallow, but because of a legitimate love and appreciation for the people I was surrounded in. I miss the feeling of belonging to that kind of a close knit family, and honestly, it pains me that in Miami, I don't feel that I have that right now. What is it about me and many others that I need to have people around all the time? The problem with me isn't having "people" around, because that's not too hard to find, but having QUALITY people that I care about a lot. Having that same kind of closeness and togetherness that was so common in my summer and on Semester at Sea, and kinship and bonds that were formed from it are not as tight here.

I know other SASers are not this distraught about the whole experience being over and feeling a little lost, but I guess I was just a part of an experience that I never want to let go of. It kind of threw my old social life uspide down and made me sort of a completely different person that has grown up so much.

An update on my post-SAS semester is coming very, very soon. I just have to get my head together. I have a lot of aspirations that I''m working on and I would love to share.

Also, without Coli, I would be pretty lost this semester.

Reporting live from, um, Indiana (it's not as bad as it sounds, I swear)

2007-07-28T19:52:00.000-07:00

"Never tell anybody outside the Family what you are thinking again". - Uncle Frank Minerva (originally Don Vito Corleone, and yes he did quote the Godfather in one of our "talks")

What I love about family is that you can be away for a century and come back and everything will be exactly the same as it was when you left. I guess that's the same thing with any close relationship you have. And then once you're separated for a while, and fall out of touch, and then reunite, you pray to God that you didn't change so much that you don't connect anymore. It's kind of like we're all puzzle pieces that are constantly changing, and our life experiences are the forces that foster that change. Ideally our life experiences make our pieces fit closer and closer to the ones we love, and unfortunately that doesn't always happen, and that sucks. What really amazing life experiences can do though is make our pieces more universal, and able to fit into more and more other pieces. On an experience like traveling the world, for example, one is able to find things in common with a whole new web of people.

Here's an example. One day I decided to ride the Staten Island ferry into the city one beautiful late afternoon in the beginning of the summer. Feeling a bit touristy I stood at the bow of the ship, outside, and enjoyed the breathtaking sunset, the perfect sea air, and the amazing New York skyline. Suddenly, an older but handsome man, completely grey, randomly came up to me and said something cliche and typical, like, "This weather is great, isn' it?!". I, of course, nodded and smiled, and continued gazing into the horizon. After a few more attempts on his part, I eventually obliged his conversation starters, and I gathered that he lived on the Upper East Side near the Gracie Mansion, and that he rode his bike every single day down the West Side Highway, and today decided that he wanted to ride the Ferry. I was bored with the conversation, and just wanted him to shut up and let me enjoy the sounds of the wind blowing and the birds flying overhead. But then he said something that clicked with me and instantly had me intrigued. He said "I've been around the world three times and New York City is the only place I could ever live." From that statement on, I was hooked on Ryan (that was his name). We laughed, joked, and instantly felt a kinship instantly surface. And after we parted ways all I could think about was how much I wished that he was 50 years younger, because he was that awesome.

(AND FURTHERMORE...)

What's strange about being nineteen years old is that we are like in between generations. We're too old to be kids, yet we're still teenagers, but we're not old enough to legally drink or do many things that adults are legally allowed to do in the United States, but we can vote, and drive our cars anywhere we want to by law. On my Dad's side of my family, I have 11 first cousins. Most of them are younger than me, and they all act like I'm their age, ie: wondering I'm not sitting at the "kids' table", and asking why I'm allowed to drink beers. Don't get me wrong, I'm pretty immature at times, and like to do things that are spontaneous and juvenile, but in no way do I feel more connected to my ten year old cousins as I do with my 50-something year old aunts. So the younger generation treats me like I'm one them, and, so do the aforementioned 50-something aunts and uncles. So where do I fit in? Where do any of us fit in? Maybe I shouldn't dwell on this. Maybe in five years when I'm 24 years old and the kids no longer consider me brethren I'll miss this disjointed feeling.

3 kinda-haikus

2007-07-22T16:39:00.000-07:00

#1
Oh Shit! I'm running late
I hope I don't miss this train
There in the nick of time

#2
Cruisin' in the Volvo
Singing to cheesy radio songs
With four smiling comrades

#3
Sitting here wishing
Waiting for the show to sart
Wearing something cute.

I am whatever I say I am

2007-07-19T19:22:00.000-07:00

I was walking around the city today, after getting stoned with the owner of a company I work for, and got this sudden urge to write down all the crazy and obscene things that I was thinking about. Not necessarily because my thoughts are any more spectacular than the next stoner's, but because I had this insatiable hunger to write. Ever since I declared this journalism major thing, I've been thinking about writing quite regularly. And I always like to throw into conversations that I'm a journalist, or rather, a journalism major. Today when I was asked what I was studying in school, I mentioned "journalism", and my new aura-photographer* friend replied cheerfully, "oh! so you're a writer", and I responded eagerly "yes, I am!". Here's what's kind of silly about this whole matter. I never considered myself a writer before declaring "journalism" as my major. I always talked of enjoying writing essays, and I did truly enjoy my creative writing class two semesters ago, but never was I writer. Then, BAM!, one day I write to an advisor at my school, get signed up for COM classes, and from that day forth I was a writer. So maybe I'm a poser for now until I actually start writing stuff that people read. Or maybe I just never properly labeled myself. Whatever the case may be, calling myself a writer gives me a greater sense of meaning and purpose. I'm going writing for the public again-- and seeing where it gets me. I'm going to force this blog into the faces of those around me and become a huge part of the blogging community. Hold on people, this is the beginning of a self fulfilled prophesy.
*aura-photographer - someone who has a special camera that takes pictures of people's auras.

2007-07-09T09:38:00.000-07:00

I'm trying to write about Semester at Sea life at home, but I guess since I haven't written in a while it's really hard for me to get my thoughts down. The thing is that I miss it so much and I guess I'm just upset that I will never experience that opportunity again. It was so easy getting off the ship at the time, but it's like, now I would give anything to be back on that ship with everyone at pub night. At this point it's like I'm living for our reunions. First I had Diana's, which was amazing. Coli's this past weekend. I'm only happy around my friends who were on SAS with me. I know that sounds really bad, but it's true. Maybe it's because I just can't let the experience go. Or maybe it's because I made a dramatic transformation and the people I was with grew with me. We all came from our different backgrounds and locations and united on a Ship. Then, they took us around the world. Made to live in tight corners, and learn about the different places we were visiting together. We were forced to eat, live, and breathe together. Now it's like we can't get away from each other. The people I care to spend my time with are people from Semester at Sea. I don't want it any other way. In fact, I'm even living with a fellow SASer next semester and perhaps for the rest of college education. Coincidence? I think not.

Because of these friendships I've made and people I've met, a part of my heart will always be lying on the deck of the MV Explorer (or, simply the "MV") catching rays. Or at pub night. Or sleeping through Global Studies. Or smoking Bidis on the Smoker's Deck.

Call on me. Call on me. Call on meeeeeeeeee. Call on me. Call on meeeee.

South Africa and Mauritius

2007-04-04T04:38:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone!
I know it's been really long since I've updated, it' just becoming increasingly harder to get to free/cheap internet. Internet on the ships is way too expensive, so I usually just wait until I get to the ports. I'm actually in Malaysia right now, but I'm going to update you on South Africa and Mauritius because I just put up my pictures from those places.

So Cape Town, Africa. Wow. When we got off the boat, it looked a lot like Cape Cod. There were all of these bayside restaurants and cute little pubs and stuff. Lots of cute stores too. Cape Town's famous places of interest are Table Mountain, which is, in case you didn't guess, a flat topped mountain that looked like a table, but it was gigantic. The nice, shopping district is called Long Street. I found my favorite store in the entire world there, this place called Ska. There are also lots of really cool bars that place this special kind of music called Afro-jazz. Awesome music.

In Africa, I was lucky enough to be able to go on a safari. It was tented, in the middle of a wildlife refuge, with animals creeping around or camp at night. We saw live giraffes, water buffaloes, wild dogs (which are very rare to the region!), hyenas, zebras, and many other types of birds and rodents. We got to drive around in the ATV and take tons of pictures. We also got to see a lunar eclipse one night, and the amount of stars in the sky was unmatched. We went on 3 safaris in 2 days.

Once I got back to Cape Town, I went to a township in a poor village called Khayelitsha. I went there with this performing arts group called Africa Jam, that does programs with the children of these townships, to keep them off the streets and causing trouble. These kids had seriously nothing, and it just amde me feel good to be around their positive energy. It also made me realize how lucky we are in the US, and that it is our duty to help these people in any way possible. I had a dance off with a boy from the village... it was pretty hysterical. After visiting the township, we went to the owner of Africa Jam's house and ate some African food, and listened to some really good music, in the shadow of table mountain. Beautiful night.

The final day I went to Cape Point, which is the Southernmost tip of Africa. It was where the Indian and the Atlantic OCeans met. The view was stunning. We also got to see the penguins that live in Africa. They were seriously the most adorable little creatures!

One thing that stands out in my mind about S. Africa is that everyone loves Nelson Mandela. Everyone! His face is everywhere. I thought it was pretty cool.

Mauritius
Mauritius was basically a party port. We stayed in these awesome villas right on the beach and partied with all Semester at Sea kids. We laid out a lot, and enjoyed some delicious food. We needed a break :).

Love you guys!!!
Leave comments, I want to know what is up!

<3333anthony
http://umiami.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2076598&l=0ce57&id=10613625

http://umiami.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2076598&l=0c=10613625

http://umiami.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2082403&l=1dc70&id=10613625

http://umiami.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2082405&l=9fc52&id=10613625

post Puerto Rico and Brazil

2007-02-28T01:41:00.000-08:00

It's been a crazy trip so far. After Puerto Rico I was practically convinced that this voyage was going to be even better than I ever thought it could be. It turns out, I was very, very right. In between Puerto Rico and Brazil we passed over the equator, which was really awesome. We celebrated with what we called "Neptune Day". Like 40 people, mostly girls, shaved their heads, and I got the honor of shaving Donna, who is a 75+ year old woman. Actually, I gave her a mohawk. That was pretty cool. I also made 2 of my other friends completely bald. In lieu of our holiday we also got a mixture of milk and fish oil poured on our heads and were told to jump in the pool. Upon leaving the pool we had to kiss 2 dead fish and then the ring on "King Neptune", who is the King of the Seas. Craziness.

Brazil is place I'm definitely going back to, either to visit for an extended amount of time, or to live for a while. The people of Brazil really welcomed me, and I felt like a Brazilian native when I was there. My tan skin probably helped with that. Because I was there for Carnaval, the biggest party of the year, there were people partying in the streets around the clock. The very first day in Salvador, we just walked around the small cobblestone town and bought all kinds of beautiful clothing, artwork, and jewelry. Later that night I went to this wonderful Brazilian dinner and dance show, where the dancers did capoeira (a form of martial arts in dance form) and grabbed a couple of us on stage. After that 2 friends and I got lost in a really native part of town where we stood out like sore thumbs. Carnaval was going on, and the "blocos" or floats, were amazing and the energy was so contagious. After that we went to this reggae club, and after that we met up with our crew and partied the night away.

On Sunday we continued our exploration of Salvador, and ate some really good food, and really got to talk to some natives. My friend Meagan and I went to an art gallery and talked to the artist there. After that, we met this woman who owned a bar, who let us experience Carnaval like a native, by giving us confetti to throw on the oncoming paraders. It was probably the best day in Brazil.

The next day 2 friends and got on a plane and went to Rio de Janeiro. Rio is geographically the most beautiful place I've ever seen. There are beautiful mountains, and beaches, and idyllic waters. Our hotel was gorgeous and our room was HUGE.
The first day we had a traditional Brazilian barbecue style meal, where you pay like 49 reals (or $25 US) and the workers come around with big slabs of meat and you pick which ones you want, unlimitedly. Yes, I ate meat. Oh well. My vegetarianism has been postponed for a little bit, haha. They also had this buffet type thing with all different types of seafoods and veggies.
Later that night we went to Le Boy, which is supposedly the biggest gay club in Brazil. It was pretty sketchy, but our group had a lot of fun anyway. We made a friend who was around our age from Brazil, who told us about Brazilian from an insider's perspective.

The next day was pretty much a sight seeing day. We went to Ipanema, which is the ritzy beachy place in Rio, and walked around in Speedo-type bathing suits. Haha, I know it sounds weird, but everyone was doing that, so it wasn't weird of us. No stores were really open though because of Carnaval, which SUCKED, but luckily we did find that one store. We went to Ipanema beach, which had the most gorgeous men EVER and the biggest waves I've ever seen. A funny mental image that stands out in my mind is this huge woman in a bikini rolling around in the sand because the water threw her there. Mwahahaha.
After the beach I went to see Christ the Redeemer, which is a statue on top of a mountain of Jesus hugging the city of Rio. It was a beautiful sight. (Look at my pics) At night I went to another great restaurant where the service was AMAZING! After that we went to Lapa where the Carnaval festivities were especially crazy. After all, it was Mardi Gras. Got back relatively early, because we had to catch a flight the next morning back to Salvador to re-board the ship.

As of now, we're 2 days away from Cape Town, South Africa. I'm going on a safari, to the winelands, a township/service project/traditional African dinner, and maybe skydiving. I'll keep everyone posted! Stay safe, and I will try to!

LOVE,
aNTHONY

http://umiami.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2075159&l=8c9d3&id=10613625

Puerto Rico and first days on the MV Explorer

2007-02-09T14:40:00.000-08:00

I'm sitting in a Starbuck's right now, and my computer battery is about to die, so I'm going to try and write this entry as quick as possible.

The ship is amazing. I've met so many amazing people already and I'm only 1 week into the journey. Actually, not even. It's been about 5 days. There are so many people who I'm learning so much from already, students and professors included.

On Wednesday our crew walked around Old San Juan and explored the mall. We all had some errands to run, so we got those done, and that was pretty cool. At night, we went to a Welcome Reception at a local universidad, El Sagrado Corazon, and were greeted by these amazing Puerto Rican musicians, dancers, and singers. They were so energetic and welcoming, I felt right at home, and I really feel like a I learned a lot about their culture. This experience was seriously eye opening, because I really saw true differences in PRican Universities vs. the AMerican ones. What would we do for international students to show them our culture if a group of them came to our campus? I wonder...

On Thursday I went Horseback Riding at Hacienda Caribaldi on a crazy horse named Pancho. He bit the other horses and farted and shat a lot. He was pretty cute though. We went through the tropical forests of Puerto Rico and trotted through creeks. That was pretty cool. After that a group of us went to this beautiful beach and just chatted and laid out. Later that night we got a taste of PR culture when we went to some local bars and talked to some natives.

Today I went kayaking and the boat leaves in about 4 hours. Getting there late means that I get what's known as dock time, which is time where we're forced to stay on the boat in the next port. You better believe I'm gonna hurry my ass back there.

Love you all and miss you lots!

-Anthony

Last day in the US of A

2007-02-01T12:30:00.000-08:00

"Travel and change of place impart new vigor to the mind." - Seneca

The boat leaves Sunday, but tomorrow I'm meeting up with Jon and Sam in the Bahamas, as well as some other Semester at Sea-ers to party and unwind before we have to start hitting the books. I am, after all, still taking a full courseload! I'm taking:

Global Studies (required)
International Conflict Resolution: Theory and Practice
Introduction to International Relations
Global Environmental Politics
(and, just for fun...) African Ensemble II: African Xylophones

----------------------------------

The preparation for this trip has been a nightmare. The amounts of paperwork have been ghastly, and these past few days my Mom and I have been running all around town picking up different toiletries, bug repellents, and just so much other shit. I also started taking doxycycline, which is a Malaria prevention medication. I've had to adjust to those pills, plus all the packing and saying goodbye. It's hard work! I know it'll all be worth it though. Actually, speaking of packing, I'm nowhere near done and I'm leaving my house like 15 hours, wahhhhhh!

----------------------------------

For those who wish to send me any mail (or money! haha) go to the link below, and it'll give you the address and all the details about sending me goodies.

http://www.semesteratsea.com/voyages/spring2007/sp2007_communicatewship.html

Ciao!
Anthony

PS: My next blog will be post-Puerto Rico! Be excited!

2 weeks away

2007-01-19T08:36:00.000-08:00

"I love to sail forbidden seas and land on barbarous coasts."
-Herman Melville

Everything's all set up. I have my visas for Brazil, India, and China, everything's paid for (Thanks Mom and Dad, haha) , I have most of my textbooks, got everything I need. Now the only thing to do is wait. I'm leaving to go to the Bahamas in exactly two weeks from today to chill a couple of days before the boat leaves Nassau. And then I start my voyage around the world. And around the world I mean :

San Juan, Puerto Rico
Salvador, Brazil
Cape Town, South Africa
Port Louis, Mauritius
Chennai, India
Penang, Malaysia
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Hong Kong
Qindao, China
Kobe, Japan
Honolulu, Hawaii
San Diego, California

I'm also taking 13 credits, mostly of international studies courses, but I'm going to try and pick up one more three credit course once I get on the boat.